GROUP 3:
Asian Masculinity
Roles: Debaters: Cameron, Julie, Vincent, Kherlen
Transcriber: Kherlen
Tech person: Kherlen
Webpage overview:
Our assigned cultural case study shows two people, Patrick Suzuki and Kacie McIntosh, from Love Is Blind, a pairing that became very controversial. It places an Asian American man at the center of a popular dating show. A place where Asian men have historically been stereotyped as immature and not grown. Patrick’s presence challenges long-standing racial biases in dating culture. He is very confident, attractive, and shows a sense of belonging, challenging the historical stereotype. Our group’s cultural case study, Marvel’s Shang-Chi, is also controversial as the first Asian led superhero film in the MCU. While widely celebrated for redefining Asian male masculinity through a strong and confident hero. The film started a debate about whether it actually breaks stereotypes or just shows culture through martial arts. Both case studies highlight how media representations can either make or break the model minority myth. Together, these case studies show why representation in media is culturally and emotionally important for Asian American men today.
Discussion Questions:
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How are Asian men demasculinized in our culture? Is there a shift happening in Hollywood?
Podcast Audio (group decided for transcript to be embedded in audiofile as caption)
Sources
Assigned Cultural Case Study: Love Is Blind’s Patrick Suzuki and Kacie McIntosh
“The “Asexual” Asian Man - End the Undesirable Stereotype.” Www.youtube.com, www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k82hIqd1Os
Case Study: Shang Chi
Assigned scholarly source:
Chong, Kelly H, and Nadia Y Kim. ““The Model Man:” Shifting Perceptions of Asian American Masculinity and the Renegotiation of a Racial Hierarchy of Desire.” Men and Masculinities, vol. 25, no. 5, 14 Nov. 2021, pp. 674–697, https://doi.org/10.1177/1097184x211043563
“Let’s End the “Undesirable Asian Male” Stereotype.” Verywell Mind, www.verywellmind.com/let-s-end-the-undesirable-asian-male-stereotype-5271703
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Scholarly source:
Iwamoto, Derek Kenji, et al. “Masculine Norms, Avoidant Coping, Asian Values, and Depression among Asian American Men.” Psychology of Men & Masculinity, vol. 11, no. 1, Jan. 2010, pp. 15–24, https://doi.org/10.1037/a0017874
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Popular news media:
Kung, Andrew. “The Desexualization of the Asian American Male.” CNN, 3 Mar. 2020, www.cnn.com/style/article/andrew-kung-asian-american-men
Assigned Cultural Case Study: Love Is Blind’s Patrick Suzuki and Kacie McIntosh
This case study shows how an Asian American man is placed at the center of a mainstream dating narrative, challenging historical stereotypes of Asian men.
Assigned Viewing: “The ‘Asexual’ Asian Man – End the Undesirable Stereotype” | The Take (2021)
This video explains the historical and media roots of the stereotype of how Asian men are asexual and unapproachable.
Group Case Study: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Shang-Chi provides a major Hollywood example, challenging the norms of an Asian American with his masculinity and confidence.
Assigned Scholarly Source: “‘The Model Man’” | Chong & Kim (2024)
This scholarly article examines how contemporary culture is reshaping Asian American masculinity and renegotiating racial hierarchies of desire.
Assigned Popular News Media Source: “Let’s End the ‘Undesirable Asian Male’ Stereotype” | Katharine Chan (2022)
Chan’s article discusses the emotional harm of the “undesirable Asian male” stereotypes and wants a more accurate representation of them.
Additional Scholarly Source: PMC Article
This article analyzes mental health challenges faced by Asian Americans, showing how it can break someone down.
Additional Popular News Media Source: CNN – Andrew Kung Photo Essay
This CNN piece uses photography to challenge stereotypes and highlight the differences and beauty of Asian men.
Cultural Artifacts
https://www.reddit.com/r/LoveIsBlindOnNetflix/comments/1nwjja3/wtf_kacie/
A Reddit thread discussing how Kacie McIntosh on Love Is Blind acted with Patrick Suzuki about his race/ethnicity.
https://www.reddit.com/r/LoveIsBlindOnNetflix/comments/1nwpig3/kacie_and_patrick/
A Reddit thread discussing how Kacie McIntosh on Love Is Blind acted with Patrick Suzuki about his race/ethnicity.
https://www.reddit.com/r/asianamerican/comments/117txe2/question_about_emasculating_stereotypes/
A Reddit thread discussing personal experiences about stereotypes that Asian men face and how it emasculates them.
https://www.reddit.com/r/aznidentity/comments/ox9osc/the_subtle_but_not_so_subtle_emasculation_and/
A Reddit thread discussing the emasculating stereotypes Asian men face throughout social media and Hollywood.
A Reddit thread discussing the backlash against actor Simu Liu when he spoke out about the racism/stereotypes he faced.